


Azulon's Gambit

by Stkichi



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Fire Nation (Avatar), Fire Nation Lore (Avatar), Fire Nation Politics (Avatar), Fire Nation Royal Family, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:08:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28654725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stkichi/pseuds/Stkichi
Summary: Fire Lord Sozin started a war the Fire Nation could not possibly win. When his nation looks to him for leadership; it is his son who emerges from his shadow.
Relationships: Azulon & Iroh (Avatar), Azulon & Ozai (Avatar), Azulon & Sozin (Avatar), Azulon & Ursa (Avatar), Azulon/Ilah (Avatar)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	1. Stand Behind Me

_10 AG_

"Prince Azulon."

The young prince opened his left eye slightly. The servants all knew how badly he hated to be interrupted during his meditation.

"This had better be urgent." He tried his best to make his voice as deep as possible.

The servant shot to the floor in a bow, his chest still heaving from apparent running. "My Prince, I must deeply apologize for-"

"Stop. You also know that I can't stand talking to people who won't show me their eyes." The servant rose slowly, still not used to such a strange command from royalty. "Thank you Azek. Continue please."

Azek flinched at being called by his own name, another strange quirk of Azulon. He knew everyone's names who roamed the palace. "Forgive me once more for forgetting. I only intruded because there is a War Council session tomorrow."

Azulon's eyes narrowed. "I know that. That still does not excuse you interrupting me."

Azek resisted the urge to lower his head again. "Forgive me once more my Prince. But… Fire Lord Sozin has not returned from his search yet this year."

He shot up immediately. "Why was I not informed of this earlier?"

"Forgive me, normally Fire Lord Sozin sends us a message with his intent to attend his yearly meeting only a few days prior to his arrival. The council members have grown worried that he will not be able to attend this year. They told me to inquire what you believe they should do if he were unable to attend."

Azulon's palms began to heat as he thought of his father. "You can tell me the truth Azek. The War Council knows that my father is too busy on his foolish search to care about the war."

The servant couldn't hold his head up this time. "The War Council would never dare insult the great Fire Lord Sozin."

"Not in front of me they wouldn't."

Azek was clearly at a loss for words as he stammered.

"Just go. Tell them that I will attend the session in my father's place."

"Of course my Prince." He left quickly before Azulon could order him to say anything treacherous.

* * *

Azulon adjusted the heavy spiked shoulder plate once more as he worked his way to the War Council chambers. He would guess that most people his age would find his position to be straight out of a nightmare. After all, he was about to walk into a room full of people four times his age and experience who would all be looking up to him for advice.

Azulon was not like most people his age though. In fact, he prided himself on it.

He pushed through the red curtain and assumed his position at the head of the giant world map. Twelve regally armored men had been kneeling from their position since he entered.

The young prince blew out a final nervous breath. "Stop." Twelve heads all raised to look at him slowly with confusion. "We have come here to discuss the war, not grovel at my feet."

"O-of course Prince Azulon." Grand Admiral Zhen spoke from his left. "Forgive us."

Azulon groaned. "Unnecessary apologizing counts as groveling. Just pretend I am my father and conduct the meeting as you normally would." Despite his years of studying, he did have to admit that these War Council sessions were quite unknown to him. They were about the one thing his father had not permitted him to attend.

After a few whispers of uncertainty that Azulon chose to ignore, Supreme General Itazi rose to his feet. "Prince Azulon. The war goes well. I have assembled a majority of the available forces in Yu Dao. When winter relents we will be marching on the Earth Kingdom stronghold Taku."

Azulon folded his hands beneath his chin as he stared at the clay figurines that represented the armies of his nation. His lips formed a slight frown over the number of troops in the north-western Earth Kingdom. "Very good Supreme General Itazi."

The man bowed briefly before sitting. Grand Admiral Zhen stood up in his place. "Prince Azulon. We have a fleet of twelve Kuruza Cruisers patrolling the Mo Ce Sea. The other twenty cruisers are running supplies between the homeland and the colonies."

"Thank you Grand Admiral Zhen." The older man bowed before retaking his position. Azulon stared intently at the clay ships and other figurines; the story that they told was heard loud and clear and he didn't like it.

"My fellow hotmen." The rather low brow name he had given them had all of them looking around the room. He rose before speaking again. "I apologize; did the peasant word I use offend any of you?" Their looks grew even more frantic. "If you want to stop being referred to as peasants than all of you better stop forming idiotic strategies."

Supreme General Itazi was the first one brave enough to speak; just another thing Azulon made a mental note of. "P-prince Azulon… I am afraid we do not understand."

Azulon's eyes remained unwavering. "No, it is me who does not understand. I do not understand how all of you have managed to conquer only a fraction of the Earth Kingdom after ten long years at war." Nobody was brave enough to meet his challenge this time. "Perhaps I need to help you hotmen out. How long do these meetings usually last with my father?"

This time it was Zhen who spoke. "Under normal circumstances, we keep Fire Lord Sozin informed on all the activity within both the Earth Kingdom and the Fire-"

"I asked how long."

Zhen gulped. "T-the meeting would normally last a few minutes. Fire Lord Sozin is a very busy man."

"Do not spare me your true feelings."

"Prince Azulon, I speak only the truth."

"And I know the truth." He began slowly working his way behind his advisors. "The truth is that my father is wasting the rest of his life searching for an already dead Avatar instead of focusing on the war. Now speak to me freely, why have we been unable to progress further across the Earth Kingdom? From what I understand, guarding such a vast land would require troops that not even such a large nation could possess."

Supreme General Itazi met his eyes as he made his way back to the head of the table. "We are truly able to speak freely Prince Azulon?"

"My word is my honor."

"At the start of the war, Fire Lord Sozin dedicated nearly all of the army's budget and troops towards the construction of fake Air Nation sanctuaries in the Pavana Mountains."

The young grit his teeth over yet another thing he had never heard of. "What is the purpose of these sanctuaries?"

"They were built to lure in any airbenders that escaped our attack of the temples. A squad of troops guards each one night and day."

"How successful have they been?"

"Successful?"

Azulon sighed loudly as he closed his eyes. "How many airbenders have these sanctuaries lured in?"

Itazi looked across the table for help before returning his gaze to the prince. "Less than thirty. None in the past five years. Many of the original hundred sanctuaries have been destroyed and we have been forced to rebuild them in other locations."

"How were they destroyed? You said there were troops stationed there." Azulon was liking these fake sanctuaries less and less.

Itazi's whole face paled. "We are unsure. The troops at all of them were killed before we even heard of any of the attacks."

"Of course they were. I'm assuming my father only ordered you to rebuild the sanctuaries rather than look into the attacks?"

"Uh…"

Azulon pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, what happened to the airbenders we did lure in then?"

"Fire Lord Sozin told us to capture them and hand them over to War Minister Kuraz." He could at least say this with confidence.

"I have not had the pleasure of meeting War Minister Kuraz. Why is he not at this meeting?"

Itazi's head lowered. "War Minister Kuraz is very busy overseeing the construction of new colonies on Ember Island."

Azulon could only roll his eyes. "I imagine Ember Island suits his needs quite well." The advisors did not understand once more so he continued. "Do you know what War Minister Kuraz is doing with the airbenders?"

Itazi broke out in a sweat as he could only shake his head.

"Very well." Azulon rose to his feet to walk around the table again. "Treasurer Zokane, please begin reallocating all of the army budget back into the actual army. Supreme General Itazi, inform all the troops manning the sanctuaries to regroup with your forces in Yu Dao; we are abandoning the sanctuaries. Grand Admiral Zhen, I need you to halt the supply chain of those twenty cruisers and move them up the Jishu River in order to siege Taku from the east. We will pay merchant sailors to use their ships in order to make up for the loss."

The whispers of confusion had turned into fully raised voices of confusion across the table. Grand Admiral Zhen rose to speak on all of their behalf. "Prince Azulon, to comply with any of these orders would be in direct conflict with previous orders from Fire Lord Sozin."

"Gentlemen." His pacing had brought him back to the head of the table as he spent a moment looking into each of their eyes. "I realize what I ask of you is treasonous even to think of, but I ask you to think of what my orders will accomplish. I know that a majority of you have at least one son serving in the army or navy. Every day that this war drags on is another day that you will not see them. Follow me and I will lead the Fire Nation to a swift and decisive victory."

Murmurs shot around the table once more as they realized any hope of another painless war meeting flew out the window when Azulon stepped foot in the room.

The young prince knew they needed more assurance. "Gentlemen, I swear upon my honor that if you follow my orders over my father's then it will not be any of you who incurs his wrath. If my foolish father ever does find out about the changes then I will accept full responsibility for them. If you stand behind me, then I will be your gracious leader through every victory and and every defeat. Especially the defeats."

Each advisor looked at each other once more with the same expression; absolute disbelief that they were so willing to throw away their lives behind the promise of a ten-year-old boy who spoke well beyond his years.

Surprisingly, it was the lowest ranking advisor, the leader of the Royal Procession, Zin Lee, who rose to his feet. "We stand behind you, Prince Azulon."

"I assure you that your confidence is not misplaced gentlemen. Zin Lee, will you please bring in some servants? This meeting will be running quite long and I am desperate for refreshments."

"O-of course, Prince Azulon." The young man hurried out the curtain to comply with another order that went against another Fire Nation custom; no servants inside the War Council's chambers.

The eleven advisors left quickly realized it would not be the last of Azulon breaking custom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much reading, this is another story I am crossposting from my FFN account at the request of a reader. This story focuses on various points of Azulon's life and other interesting events during the war. It is not chronological and will be jumping around a lot which is why I post the year which coincides with Azulon's age. So 10 AG is 10 years after the genocide of the Air Nation and Azulon is 10.
> 
> Lots of word origin/pronunciation this time around:   
> Zhen = Chinese name meaning greatly astonished (pretty perfect for the War Council I think)   
> Kuruza (Kuh-roo-zuh) = Japanese word for cruiser   
> Zokane = Adapted from Japanese word for money   
> Pavana (puh-vah-nuh) = Sanskrit word for wind   
> Jishu (Gee-shu) = Chinese word for technology
> 
> All other names were made up based off of common Fire Nation naming conventions.


	2. What a Lifetime of Success Brings

_95 AG_

The balcony extending off of the Fire Lord's chambers had been the first actual move he had made when he became Fire Lord. He had received that same strange look that accompanied all his unusual requests.

Fire Lord Azulon, already well known for his cunning and often times ruthless decision making, would not make any more war plans until his balcony was completed. The workers finished it in two days.

The time it took them did not speak to its quality however. It was made from twenty different cherry blossom tress and the painters painstakingly detailed the beautiful petals along the railings with paints made from the illusive hana flower.

The actual balcony was unimportant to him though; the view was what mattered. The palace gardens were always a welcome sight to his weary mind, despite him having not entered the garden for decades.

_I don't deserve to set foot in such beauty._ The bitter thought had been an increasingly common one in his mind.

The sound of his chambers' doors being opened brought his attention to his new visitor. Princess Ursa entered with a small smile towards her father-in-law. Azulon had long done away with the practice of a door servant announcing any guests. Anyone that had the bravery to see him in his own chambers was more than worthy to talk to him.

She sat down in the chair opposite him before setting a tray on the table between them.

"Good evening, Azulon." Ursa knew how much he hated the stuffiness that came from using titles at all times. He only put up with it in war meetings after heavy advisement that a Fire Lord should be referred by their birth right. "Would you like some tea?"

He nodded once and took the offered cup once she was through pouring it. By the smell he could tell it was jasmine, his favorite. Without taking a sip he put it back on the table. "Tell me something, if I didn't drink the poison, what were you going to do?" His eyes never left the garden as his tone remained calm.

She blew out a small breath before exposing the small dagger she had hid in her sleeve. Still, she maintained her calm exterior.

Azulon smiled. Ursa had always impressed him with her poise and mostly hidden cunning. Of course, he had long given up the hope of either of these rubbing off on her husband. "You should've had Ochai deliver it. He always brings up the tea for our talks." Their regular talks had also become another of his favorite aspects about Ursa, especially since Ilah passed away.

"I know. I wanted you to know." She sniffled slightly.

"Your husband told you what I said in the throne room." He left the obvious truth as a statement before continuing. "Only he could interpret that threat as aimed toward Zuko. I swear he will know pain like no other, but worry not, your son is safe." She immediately moved to take his cup back before his hand stopped her movements. "No. Leave it."

"Azulon, please. You know I meant no offense." He had always hated how menacing his words were taken.

He grabbed the cup before lifting it under his nose. "I know. He threatened you, didn't he?"

"He threatened Zuko…" Some tears managed to leak out this time.

"Then I must die."

His resigned message sent a chill through her. "No, I rushed to conclusions. He scared me is all. There is another way I am sure."

"There isn't. He is as impatient as he is foolish. Iroh's spirit has been broken, Ozai will rule in his place."

Ursa followed his gaze, hoping that somehow it had the key to understanding his strange words. "But…why? You know he is unfit to rule."

"I'm counting on it. I owe the world that much."

"Azulon, you are an incredibly gifted man whose accomplishes fill up a whole library."

"Have you been reading our own propaganda? Our nation will grieve my loss, while the rest of the world celebrates my death."

"As they should, you struck fear in your enemies-"

"Stop. Do you really think I want to hear nothing but groveling in my last moments?"

Ursa set her lip in a line before nodding for him to continue.

"My father started this war by committing the biggest atrocity the world will ever know. I used to think that he had doomed me to this life. A life where I could go nowhere without being seen as a heartless monster. It seemed his plan was always to mold me into this. I was not raised by a family, but rather by a committee. I never knew my mother; she was just some royal concubine chosen for her fertility given Sozin's age. I don't think I ever had an actual conversation with my father." He motioned towards the cup. "Will it hurt?"

She shook her head. "No. It will take effect when you sleep."

He frowned at her words even still before gulping down the liquid at once; she didn't even flinch. He stared at the cup for a brief moment before setting it down. "Fitting that I go out like a coward." Ursa opened her mouth in protest, but he shook his head before the words could come out. "I have realized far too late in my old age that my own atrocities were not a result of my father; they are my own to bare. I could have stopped this war a long time ago. I deserve this fate. My father may have plunged the world into darkness, but I made sure it could never return. I am the monster my father always knew I could be."

"You believe he will lose the war." Ursa had figured out his plan. She always was quick to pick up on things.

He shook his head slowly with his eyes close. "Of that I cannot be sure. I can only hope that my death will bring upon some peace. I only wish I could live to see the day that Ozai pays for his sins." He signed the paper she brought with the tray, having no doubt it was some proclamation that Ozai was the better choice for Fire Lord after Lu Ten's passing. He wished he could see Iroh again, to plead with him to understand. The Spirits would not be giving him that chance of course.

She rose to her feet slowly. "I'm not sure if it matters, but I never thought you were a monster."

"Neither did Ilah. But I know now the Spirits took her from me as means of punishment. Do not weep for me, nobody else will."

Ursa turned around one last time as she reached for the door. "Goodbye Azulon."

"Goodbye Ursa."

As he observed the setting sun one last time, his thoughts turned to his first ever war meeting. The day he began turning a winless war into a seemingly surefire victory. The image of Ilah's smiling face normally calmed his troubled mind, but for the last ten years since her passing he could only see her frown.

He hoped tonight that would change. Azulon got into his bed for the final time.

"Please Spirits, just let me see her one last time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that Azulon is described as a cold and ruthless leader, but I have a feeling that only makes up a small part of him. He seems to care way too much about Iroh at least for him to be totally inhuman. Plus, the idea of this amazingly intelligent and cunning person being taken down by Ursa poisoning him unknowingly seems utterly ridiculous. Also if you aren't familiar, Ilah was Azulon's wife who we pretty much know nothing about besides her name.
> 
> I also really quick want to touch on me saying that Azulon's threat was not meant for Zuko. I know it may seem strange, but I do have an in canon source to back me up. In the episode Zuko Alone, following Azulon saying that Ozai's punishment had barely begun, we hear the sound of firebending, but never see it. Then Azula comes to Zuko's room saying that Ozai would be killing him. Clearly, Azulon either attacked Ozai or meant to scare him, but I struggle to believe he would plan to kill Zuko as well. I mean, why would the guy who has guided the Fire Nation through a near century long war be so willing to kill one of his heirs? He has to know they don't exactly grow on trees. Especially after he just said how disrespectful Ozai was being in regards to Lu Ten's death. So yeah, I really doubt Azulon would so purposefully jeopardize his blood line just to teach Ozai a lesson.
> 
> Word Origin/Pronunciation: Ochai (O-chy) = Adapted from the Japanese word for tea


	3. Clay Soldiers

_40 AG_

Nights like these he could never stand to see her. He would lock himself in his office and not emerge to the morning after.

These sorts of nights always happened after a war meeting and the servants always assumed he was working on new strategies or signing important documents.

She always knew better.

The next morning, she would press him until eventually he would confess what had gone on in the meeting. He didn't think he could tell her the truth this time.

Said truth was that the war meeting was actually going quite well up to the end. His advisors had finished recounting about their success all across the north-western parts of the Earth Kingdom. The colonies were thriving and any Earth Kingdom resistance had been reduced to a few small and scattered rebellions.

Some divisions had even moved east across the Pavana Mountains and poked at the buzzard wasp nest that was Ba Sing Se. Meaningless pokes were all they were though.

They had nowhere near the amount of troops necessary to tackle a siege of the Earth Kingdom stronghold, so some savvy generals opted to merely disrupt supply convoys or troop movements. They didn't come within a hundred miles of the wall.

Then Grand Admiral Tokuza brought up how little progress they had made in the Southern Earth Kingdom. Ever since their first ill-fated attempt at capturing Omashu two years ago ended in total defeat, they had been unable to get any troops south of the Jishu River.

The Southern Water Tribe were apparently sick of guarding their own quiet borders and used their vast navy to assist the Earth Kingdom. Tokuza said that despite the recent introduction of the Empire-class battleships, his fleet was struggling to win any battles against the Southern Water Tribe.

Their waterbenders allowed them to sneak up on the much bigger Fire Nation ships and sink them before the crews could even hope to fight back.

The hit-and-run tactic was proving to be their biggest weakness throughout the war as squashing any of the small rebellions took more time to squash then any of their sieges of an Earth Kingdom stronghold.

As for the issue of the Water Tribe specifically, his advisors seemed completely stumped as they began shouting out ideas for what to do.

"Increase the size of the fleet from six to eight ships."

"Keep the catapults and ballistas armed at all times."

"Go north around the Earth Kingdom and come down the Karsu River to avoid them."

"We should launch a full scale invasion on the Southern Water Tribe when winter ends."

Azulon rose and everyone silenced themselves in an instant. From the start he knew what to do, he had just hoped for once someone else besides him would suggest it. "Gentleman, we must practice patience. Omashu will still be there next year. To attack the Southern Water Tribe would require resources that we do not possess. I suggest instead that we target what makes their navy so threatening. Come this summer, when the days are long in the south pole we will employ their own tactic against them."

Murmurs of confusion were heard around the room, earning another sigh from the Fire Lord. He really would have spell it for them. "Grand Admiral Tokuza, I am tasking you with creating a fleet of six Kuruza Cruisers, their speed will prove invaluable. Your choice of commander is entirely up to you. The goal is simple: raid the Southern Water Tribe and kidnap the waterbenders one at a time. Keep the attacks random, never at night, and only challenge them in numbers you can handle."

Azulon closed his eyes as all twelve advisors began showering him with admiration over his latest monstrous idea.

The memory was fresh in his mind even now hours after the meeting had ended. He was quietly stewing in his office while his advisors all went home singing his praises to their families about how Fire Lord Azulon would guide them through this war.

He received all the praise and seemed to be the only one to feel the guilt.

After having stared at the wall for the past two hours, he finally got to his true purpose as he pulled three clay figures from his desk. They represented the 21st, 54th, and 63rd divisions in the Fire Nation Army.

And all their members were now dead.

One of his strange commands from his early unofficial ruling days was to never re-use a division number when one was destroyed. This led to far too many replacement clay figures in the War Council's chambers.

He held one of the clay figures in his hand before throwing it in the nearby fireplace. "Goodbye Lee Zhing, Zerin, Izi…" Azulon began naming every member of the division from memory. He purposefully left off their ranks; they deserved better than to be remembered as just a foot soldier in his father's war. "Although your bodies have moved on, your inner fires will forever burn."

The clay figure turned to ash as he began on the next names.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is obviously the creation of the Southern Raiders, which in canon Azulon actually did create. I know this chapter is rather short, but I really aim to keep a chapter focused on only one aspect from the war or Azulon's life. Naturally, some will be longer than others depending on the subject matter.
> 
> On to the chapter at hand: So this is the second chapter in a row to reference Ilah's effect over Azulon. Considering that together they raised Iroh, I really struggle to believe that Azulon was this entirely evil man. I also think that Ilah would bring out the best in Azulon, who will in turn have a huge internal conflict. This will be explored later on, but the basis comes from Ilah seeing Azulon as so much more than a genius warlord. In turn this creates that internal conflict in Azulon who commits these acts of atrocity all in the vain hope of ending the war sooner. After all, he could've ordered the waterbenders to be killed like his father, but instead chooses for them to just be kidnapped. Undeniably evil yes, but nowhere near the same level as genocide.
> 
> As always, feel free to disagree and thanks for reading.


	4. The Dotted Line

_20 AG_

His father had died.

Azulon reread the official scroll sent by the captain of Sozin's ship ten times over and he still couldn't believe it. He thought his father was going to search for the Avatar for the rest of time.

Against all odds, Sozin had fought off multiple bouts of scurvy, pneumonia, and even one severe case of pentapox. Men half his age died on board his ship when he decided to look in some of the more treacherous parts of the world. And in the end, he died in his sleep of old age.

_Only fitting that he got off easily._

The thought had stayed with Azulon for a few days after Sozin's death, but once the official mourning time ended he no longer cared about if Sozin suffered or not. He had finally been crowned Fire Lord after ten long years of doing his father's job while he got all the credit.

Azulon and his advisors had done an excellent job of staying under Sozin's radar in those ten years, but this was unfortunately limiting them on what issues they could tackle. Sozin still kept his eyes on various projects.

This was Azulon's time now though. He did need to be secretive or seek someone's permission. The Fire Nation was his to rule alone.

He was quickly realizing though with his new found power came one small problem. He had to sign off on everything. Literally everything.

A document asking permission for Caldera City Primary School to add a belt to their uniforms. Signing off on a new guard station being built by the harbor. Asking him if soldiers could bring their own fireflakes on base.

In his one day as Fire Lord he thought he had easily already signed more documents than the entire world's population combined. This was quite contrary to what he was used to, considering when he was illegally running the nation he hadn't had to sign a thing. His signature was rather worthless then actually.

"Could I get you to sign on this?"

He didn't even bother to lift his head to see who had invaded his office this time. Rather he just took the offered parchment and without thinking burned the letter "A" into it.

The mystery signature needing person stammered for a few seconds as they looked at the strange burn mark left on the page, but knew better than to question their Fire Lord. Particularly, a visibly upset Fire Lord.

After his office door shut softly he lifted his head and chuckled slightly to himself. He practiced this new firebending signature on a blank scroll and was quite satisfied with both the results and the speed he could make a rather intricate letter "A".

He mentally checked off efficient signatures as another form that he had mastered.


	5. Simple

_25 AG_

It would be painless.

Simple.

He could be done in less than five minutes.

He was a master firebender; afraid of nothing.

The books he had studied in anticipation would guide him.

Enough stalling.

He had studied the door for so long that he could paint it from memory.

First he would have to master painting.

Perhaps he would do that beforehand.

It was a lovely door.

Painting would only take him a few years to master.

No, it must be done for the good of his people.

He was their Fire Lord for the good and the bad.

Azulon gave one last drawn out sigh before pushing the door open and stepping into the ballroom. Inside were his targets.

Ten women around his age from only the most noble of noble families. It would just be one simple conversation. He would choose the one whose family held the most influence and had "good birthing hips". He took an analytic gaze at all of them and frowned, the books didn't have any diagrams of course.

"Best to get it over with." He muttered before stepping in front of the first girl; who in turn sprawled out on her hands and knees in a deep bow.

"Fire Lord Azulon, my father would be most honored if you would accept me as your bride." Her voice was soft and her face pretty enough. The hips he was still unsure about.

Azulon gazed at the back of her head, his expression unreadable to the rest of them. _She didn't even mention her name_.

He waited for a few seconds longer in case she would plead her case anymore, but she stayed there perfectly still. She only rose after he moved on to the next girl.

She sold herself in the exact same manner as the first girl. As did the next four he all stood in front of. The brave ones actually managed to change up the rehearsed line a little bit. Instead of him honoring their father by choosing them, they would say he would honor their entire family.

Azulon's eyes twitched slightly as he forced his eyes from rolling subconsciously; a habit he had picked up on his second day as Fire Lord.

Then he came to girl number seven. She looked very similar to the others so he was at least a little shocked when she did not fall to her knees over him being in front of her, although he chalked it up to her nerves getting the better of her.

They stood looking into each other's eyes for a few moments. His gaze gave away nothing while her eyes were serious, her lips were turned up in the faintest of smiles. He sighed inwardly before coughing slightly, clearly he would have to help the poor girl out.

Her next move gave him a true surprise. She extended her hand to him. "Ilah." Her voice was firm.

Most of the other girls could not help the gasp that escaped their lips. They recovered quickly though and went back to doing their best impersonation of a porcelain doll.

Azulon wouldn't smile. He couldn't give away that much so early. He was amused though. Amused enough to extend his own hand and grip her wrist before shaking. "Azulon."

Neither one of them would break the greeting. Azulon even used his bending to his advantage to warm his hand to an uncomfortable heat. There was a slight grimace in her face before she regained composure quickly enough. She knew he wouldn't burn her. Finally, he released his grip.

"You may all take your leave."

The girls all filed out the doorway without hesitation with no signs of disappointments across their faces, not even the ones he hadn't met.

Ilah didn't leave.

Azulon smiled, if only for a split second.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this chapter and I hope you enjoyed. What follows is a rambling rant about Ilah and the Fire Nation royalty so if you don't want to find out more then feel free to skip it.
> 
> Now then onto the chapter: It was pretty long overdue for me to actually introduce Ilah so here it finally is. Azulon, the most pragmatic person in all of Pragmatism-Land, would of course treat choosing a wife like everything else he does in life: pick the best option. In case it wasn't clear Ilah probably wasn't the "best" option there.
> 
> To close off the notes: Fertility does not go away with age as it does with people in real life. I know this may seem like it's coming out of left field but it is actually a really prevalent issue in the Fire Nation royalty's bloodline. Sozin has Azulon when he is 82 and yes that can be explained as him having a young concubine. However, we know that Ozai was born in 53 AG (making him 47 during the show) and Iroh is at least 10 years older than him (no official age for him). This means that Azulon was 53 when Ozai was born. Now I can already hear the argument coming that Ilah could be much younger than Azulon (unlike in the story) and I will concede that. But there is one problem there: Ursa. Ursa was born in 64 AG (36 in the show) and was Roku's granddaughter. Roku was the same age as Sozin so he died at 70 in 12 BG. So we see that Roku's wife, Ta Min, is basically the same age as him. So yeah, Ta Min had Ursa's mother, Rina, when she was incredibly old and Rina in turn had Ursa when she was well past her child bearing years.
> 
> The timeline would look something like this: Ta Min gives birth to Rina between 15ish -12 BG -> Rina gives birth to Ursa around 70 years later in 64 AG 
> 
> So yeah to sum it all up: people are always fertile in the Avatar world, although I am sure there are risks with having a kid when you are that old.


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